Pick a lane, dude

Gourmet restaurant or old-school bowling alley. Why not both?

The North Coast Food Trail highlights unique culinary experiences on the Oregon Coast, with an emphasis on locally grown produce, small farms and foraged foods.

For Olde Line Lanes & Kitchen owners Danelle Lochrie and Ethan Granberg, those principles are right up their alley.

“We’re honored to be a stop on the trail,” Danelle said. “Using local producers is our thing; something we’ve always gone out of our way to do. We’re also really excited to participate in the annual Crave the Coast Event in Tillamook.”

At the event, on Saturday, Sept. 28, the couple will be serving ramen and fried chicken, both current menu items at the lovingly restored restaurant and bowling alley.

“We get our chickens from Emerald Hills Farm in Logsden,” Danelle said. “They are free range and fed a soy- and corn-free diet. You can’t get better than this, and it’s in a bowling alley in Lincoln City.”

The chicken, prepared with a dry brine then buttermilk-fried, is served sandwich style with a few options including “smoky sweet,” with smoky mayo, honey, greens and roasted onion; or “blue” with blue cheese, ranch sauce and roasted onion. It can also be added to salads, pizza, the house nachos or the ramen, made with chicken bone broth, soft poached local egg, ginger soy, corn salsa, scallion and cilantro.

Marinated tempeh can also be substituted in the same dishes.

“We can accommodate vegetarians and vegans,” Danelle said. “Just let us know your preference and we’ll work with it.”

Recent menu items easily dressed up or down that highlight local produce include the “berry & blue,” salad with fresh local berries and greens from Neskowin-based Corvus Landing Farms and Margarita pizza with sauce made from fresh Corvus Landing tomatoes and basil.

Creating unique culinary experiences is also the reason that when they cater events they like to keep them under 100 guests.

“We’ll go bigger of course,” Ethan said. “But we prefer a more intimate gathering where the food is an aspect of the event.”

Food can become the main event, too.

“We also do cooking events,” Ethan said. “Guests will actually get hands-on instruction.”

Olde Line Lanes & Kitchen is also growing into a favorite place for parties.

“We have someone coming to celebrate her 50th birthday.” Danelle said. “She wanted something fun and different, and a bowling party is definitely that. We’re getting more and more of these.”

If you want the place to yourself, the business is closed on Sundays and Mondays but they are more than happy to host a private event on one of those nights.

Also growing in popularity is “Cheap Date Night,” held Thursdays from 4 to 9 pm.

“You can come with a group of up to six people and get a lane for $20 an hour, including shoes,” Danelle said. “We’ve been having a lot of families and groups of friends coming in. It’s a great way to have something fun to do for only $20.”

Though the couple, long-time bowling fans, don’t have much time to knock pins down themselves anymore, they love that the business has managed to strike a balance.

“We have a lot of people that come in and eat and don’t bowl and people that bowl that don’t eat,” Danelle said. “And, of course, we have plenty that come in and do both.”

The atmosphere is also relaxed regardless of your skill level.

“You can just come in with family and friends and pass an hour without worrying about being a good bowler,” she said. “We really like that part of it.”

And Danelle will be the last person to judge your skills.

“I’m what you call a social bowler,” she said. “I still have fun, but I’m pretty terrible.”

Her skills in the kitchen however are without question, where she creates breads, cookies and other decadent deserts that are the perfect complement to Ethan’s hearty meals, small plates, salads and custom or made-to-order pizzas. And with a full bar serving cocktails, wine, cider and beer including local micro brews on tap, Olde Line Lanes & Kitchen is the whole package.

Olde Line Lanes & Kitchen is located at 316 SE Hwy. 101, south of the D River Wayside. They are open from noon to 9:30 pm Tuesday through Saturday. Call them at 541-614-1650.

Lanes are $25 for the first hour, charged by the quarter hour thereafter. A matinée special offers lanes for $20 per hour before 4 pm from Tuesday through Thursday.

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